Geothermal or Solar: Why not Both?
So you want to go green and save money on utilities while doing it, but what is the best alternative energy solution for you. A housing community in Colchester, Conn. has decided to install both solar panels and geothermal heat pump systems to almost eliminate utility bills entirely.
The White Oaks Farm community features 134 lots and each newly constructed home will feature both a geothermal heat pump system and solar panels. The geothermal systems will eliminate the need for a traditional furnace or air 
conditioning unit and the addition of solar panels makes the operating cost almost zero. Geothermal heat pumps are 400% efficient and require no natural gas or fossil fuels to run. Traditionally, the geothermal heat pump requires electricity to run, but by utilizing solar electric, running the heat pump is free.
Since the homes are all newly built they include extra insulation and high quality windows resulting in extremely tight construction. With the tight construction, geothermal heat pump, and solar panels the White Oak Farm homes cost only $500 a year in utility bills for a 2,400 square foot home according to builder Ron Gaudet.
The first buyer, Mihir Patel, has been experiencing the extremely low utility bills promised by the geothermal heat pump and solar panels. During the summer, his utility bills are only $30-$60 dollars a month and in the winter they remain below $200 per month—and only $70 is used for heating, the higher bills come from the lack of sunlight during the winter months.
So while geothermal heat pumps are the best alternative heating and cooling solution, if you want to go even more green and save even more, the addition of solar electric can run your geothermal heat pump for free!
Click here to visit the White Oaks Farm Website
Do you already have a geothermal heat pump installed? Do you know someone who does? Enter the “Free Heat Beneath Your Feet” Sweepstakes for your chance to win free electric this winter! Calculate a Ball Park geothermal heat pump cost.
Great article for homeowners. Using solar eliminates even the small amount of electricity needed to run the geothermal heat pump. We have a Geothermal installation business in Maryland, and the combined federal and state incentives here are really helping the private homeowner sector open up. Hopefully other programs for commercial and contractors are around the corner and will open up an even bigger market…
Thanks for the comment Emily. I checked out your company’s site and wanted to share some information with you. In case you didn’t see it we have launched a “Free Heat Beneath Your Feet” Sweepstakes providing one geothermal heat pump owner with free electric for the winter. Click Here for the details because I’m sure your previous customers would be interested in this. This is also a competition for contractors. The contractor who receives the most recommendations as a result of the sweepstakes will win a 10,000 website make over.
Also, check out UnitedGeothermal.org, a new organization for only the most qualified geothermal professionals in order to “separate the pros from the Joes.”
Thanks again for your comment!
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